Membership and Mentorship Programs
Member Login/Account
Current members please visit the Forums for instructions on how to upload your work.
Sadie Valeri Atelier offers the most affordable personal mentorship programs available online for classical art training, through written feedback in our private Forums.
All memberships include instant access to all of all our drawing and painting Courses.
Basic Access Without Feedback
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Instant access to our complete online classical atelier program, including all our drawing and painting courses.
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Monthly Plan
$39/month ($468/year)
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Yearly Plan Discount
More details below
Light
Feedback
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Get twice-weekly written instructor feedback on any coursework you upload to our private forums.
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Monthly Plan
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Yearly Plan Discount
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More details below
Atelier
Feedback
FULL
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The full atelier experience: Work through all our courses in our recommended order with intensive twice-weekly written critiques.
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Monthly Plan
$209/month ($2,508/year)
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Yearly Plan Discount
$191.58/month ($2,299/year)
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Our Atelier Feedback program is currently full. See more details below for how to join the wait list.
Portfolio Development
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Work directly with Sadie to plan and create a series of artworks.
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Monthly Plan
$399/month ($4,788/year)
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Yearly Plan Discount
$365.75/month ($4,389/year)
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More details and how to apply below
Light Feedback Program
Post your paintings or drawings from any of our courses in our forums and get written feedback and answers to your questions from Sadie and our instructors, up to twice a week.
Ideal for artists who want to try any course in any order. Members can post paintings or drawings from any of our courses to our forums for written feedback. Members receive help and guidance from our instructors without having to adhere to a strict atelier format. A "Light" critique includes encouragement and advice, suggestions for how to improve, and guidance on what to try next. Unlike the more formal Atelier Feedback, members don't need to follow a particular course order or wait for approval from an instructor to move forward.
"I often regretted not attending a fine arts program at university. This course fills in what I thought that I was missing. It is exactly what I have been looking for and I don't have to leave my home, and I can work at my own pace... My only regret is that I didn't come across this program sooner."
~ Feedback Member Brenda H.
Atelier Feedback Program
The full atelier experience: Work through our courses in our recommended order starting with graphite drawing for at least six months, and get intensive twice-weekly written critiques from Sadie and our instructors.
FULL
This program is currently full. Once a month we accept new members as spots open up. To be notified when new spots become available, please join our Light Feedback Program and start working through the first courses, Classical Sketchbook for Beginners and Intro to Classical Drawing.
Members of this program follow a traditional atelier plan of study, starting with Classical Sketchbook for Beginners and Intro to Classical Drawing, then advancing to Bargue Plate Drawing with Graphite. These courses take 4-6 months to complete. Once a student has completed at least one fully shaded Bargue plate with graphite (usually a hand, foot, arm or leg plate) they then have the option to do a more advanced Bargue plate, a cast drawing, a charcoal course, or a still life painting course. Figure and portrait studies then follow. Our instructors help students decide what courses to do in what order.
Atelier Feedback members post their coursework to our private forum. Every step of every lesson usually receives at least two or three rounds of feedback. The student advances to the next step only when the instructor feels that step has been mastered. In this way this is a true foundation course, with every step focused on rigorous skill-building.
All member posts are visible to instructors and members, and small thumbnails and preview snippets are also visible to the public in the activity feed on the Forums page. For those who feel more comfortable with private instruction, Atelier Feedback members have the option to make their posts visible only to our instructors.
"I have grown so much! Both as an artist and as a person. Yes, my skills have improved greatly and I still sit back in wonder when I have completed a project and say to myself “I did that”!... Unexpectedly, the greatest gift has been the stillness that has come into my life. With this I see the world differently. May I say more intensely. Life has become richer. I approach everything slower and with more awareness of all the beautiful nuances in each given moments. Life is more of a gift then it has ever been. ."
~ Feedback Member Marilyn A.
Portfolio Development Program
Work directly with Sadie for personal artistic support and art career advice.
Artists who feel ready to create a series of personal paintings or drawings are invited to apply to work with Sadie directly via private written correspondence. In this program Sadie supports artists with encouragement, inspiration, and gentle accountability as they set a goal and create a series of artworks that hold together in subject, quality, and style, suitable for application to galleries, contests, art education programs, or simply for personal artistic development.
Sadie's critique is in the form of conceptual questions and writing prompts, with a focus on the emotional and philosophical aspects of artmaking: What are your goals for this series, what inspires you most, and what kind of support will help you advance?
When the focus is on professional development, Sadie shares what she has learned about building an art career, from her own experience of being a blocked and frustrated art school graduate to becoming a full-time professional artist. Sadie's perspective and support helps her students identify their personal unique strengths and leverage them to achieve their greatest artistic goals.
"Through all our correspondence I have been amazed by your sensitivity and perception which had been quite remarkable considering it’s been online. I genuinely feel that it had been priceless to me."
--Portfolio Development Member Kate L.
$399/month or $4389/year
Limited spots are available. To apply, fill out our Contact Form and introduce yourself. Please include a brief summary of your art education experience and a few examples of your work. Upon acceptance you'll be sent a payment link to reserve your spot for the first two months.
~ How Our Mentorship Works ~
Members submit their work by posting to our private forums. Our instructors respond with detailed written feedback, including overlays as needed. Our teaching style is positive, precise, and encouraging. We are committed to helping our members reach their highest artistic goals through our personal mentoring. We believe in meeting each artist where they are at, and we always go above and beyond in offering detailed, specific, and constructive feedback at every stage of every project.
Instructors
All our instructors have been personally trained by Sadie. They were selected to teach based on their high level of personal artistic achievements, their ability to clearly verbalize technique, and for their ability to teach with emotional intelligence.
Sadie supervises all instruction closely and also adds her comments. Sadie is available by email if a member has a question or concern they would like to discuss in confidence.
Sadie personally gives all feedback in the Portfolio Development program, where she coaches and supports members in a private forum.
Flexible Schedule
Feedback is posted on Thursdays and Sundays for work submitted by 11pm PT the night before. There is no weekly requirement to upload work. Members work at their own pace and on their own schedule.
Length of Study
The entire program can be completed in 2-4 years, depending on a students' pace, previous experience level, and how many hours a week they are able to devote to practice. Students and artists of all levels see dramatic improvement within the first two months of study due to the rigorous and precise nature of this classical program, but many students continue in our program for several years. For those who can devote 10-20 hours per week year-round, the drawing program alone can easily fuel two full years of weekly study, and the painting program is similar. Just like studying a musical instrument or a foreign language, attaining mastery is a life-long practice. Members who feel ready to create a more personal series of work expressing their own artistic vision can choose to work with Sadie personally in our Portfolio Development program.
Cancel Any Time
It's easy to self-administrate your membership from the Account page, and if you need help we are readily available.